Politics and Ethics

VIEW HEADLINES ONLY

Adult Stem Cell Advances Continue

April 7, 2011

The momentum for stem cell therapy is still on the side of adult stem cells (ASC), not embryonic stem cell (ESC) research. Here are some recent findings: Blood vessel repair: A press release from King’s College London says, “Scientists from King’s College London have uncovered the first genetic evidence that shows cells found on the […]

Education

Word Choice Affects Scientific Impact

March 8, 2011

The emotional reaction to scientific ideas can change depending on the words used. Can words manipulate public opinion? “Wording matters,” said Jonathon Schuldt [U of Michigan] in a press release posted on PhysOrg. His team found that opinion polls yielded a 16% difference among Republicans depending on whether they were asked if global […]

Media

Philosophy Roundup

February 27, 2011

Philosophy of science is a broad discipline incorporating many sub-disciplines such as intellectual history, sociology, ethics, rhetoric, logic, demarcation of science from pseudoscience, classification, discovery, verification, explanation and more. A dozen recent news stories discussed some of these topics. Medical ethics: PhysOrg reproduced an AP story about medical research on humans in the US in […]

Darwin and Evolution

Racial Evolution Education Proposed

February 24, 2011

Skin color provides a “handy tool for teaching evolution,” says a anthropologist at Penn State. PhysOrg reported that professor Nina Jablonski believes “The mechanism of evolution can be completely understood from skin color.” She proposes using the easily-observed trait in humans to teach evolution to students. “People are really socially aware of skin color, intensely […]

Cell Biology

Tipping Point for Embryonic Stem Cells?

February 13, 2011

At any time, courts could rule on whether funding of embryonic stem cell research can continue or must be halted. Whichever way a decision is rendered, whether by Judge Lamberth on the legality of the NIH guidelines, or by the Court of Appeals for DC, the issue will probably wind up before the Supreme Court. […]

Darwin and Evolution

Darwinists Alarmed at Teachers Caution Over Evolution

January 29, 2011

“Creationism” refuses to die in American high schools. Two researchers at the University of Pennsylvania sounded the alarm in Science,1 with suggestions for what to do about it. The only suggestion off the table was to have debates about the evidence; no, that was completely out of the question: the report was focused on “Defeating […]

Bible and Theology

Atheist Morality Theory Under Fire

January 24, 2011

Theists would naturally take issue with an atheist’s natural explanation for morals, but when evolutionists take issue in leading secular journals, it’s worth finding out why. Both Science and Nature reviewed Sam Harris’s new book on the evolution of morality and had some concerns with his philosophy and logic. Both reviewers recognized David […]

Bible and Theology

Encouraging News About Iraqs Marshes

January 18, 2011

Over seven years ago (05/01/2003), we reported on the devastation of Iraq’s ancient southern marshes by Saddam Hussein. Azzam Alwash, an Iraqi who fled Hussein’s regime, had organized “Eden Again,” a project to try to restore the marshes after Hussein’s diversion of the rivers turned the lush ecosystem into a desert. The extent of this […]

Health

Earthquakes Dont Kill: Corrupt Leaders Do

January 17, 2011

“A new assessment of global earthquake fatalities over the past three decades indicates that 83 percent of all deaths caused by the collapse of buildings during earthquakes occurred in countries considered to be unusually corrupt.” That’s the opening statement of an entry in Science Daily. Of course, no one can predict where a […]

Cosmology

Scientists Debunk Scientists

January 12, 2011

What do you know? We look to science to tell us about reality, but how confident can we be when they keep changing the tune? Undermining cosmology: Science Daily tells us today that “Cosmology Standard Candle Not So Standard After All.” Results from the Spitzer Space Telescope show that Cepheid variables shrink as they age, […]

Cell Biology

Embryonic Stem Cell Advocates Push Against Evidence and Ethics

January 2, 2011

An old preacher said, “It’s never right to do wrong to get a chance to do right.” That sums up in simple terms the ethical problems of using embryonic stem cells to cure human diseases, apparent in this quote from PhysOrg: The potent but hotly debated cells can transform into nearly any cell in the […]